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 Posted: Wed Dec 15, 2021 4:55 pm
Quote: Prompt 7 (Snowbunnies): Winter seems to bring out the cutest of all rodents; this isn’t the first time that small, white rabbits have infested Destiny City. They’re small, rarely larger than a guinea pig, and have large eyes and wiggling noses. They are always pure white and seem to show up whenever there’s snow. They aren't menacing or evil, they're just everywhere. They seem strangely domesticated; they are sweet, curious, and friendly creatures that will eat anything you give them. They always seem cold to the touch, and when they shake, little snowflakes sprinkle off of them. While they seem to be social creatures who seem to appreciate anything warm and will cuddle up to steal body heat, they are too skittish and fast to be kept for pets. They can show up just about anywhere, either alone or--often--in pairs. They tend to wander off on their own without any trouble, but if you surprise them or try to catch or hurt them, they may bite. Their little teeth are enough to break skin, but after one bite they run away. The bite itself isn’t bad, but the effects are a bit unpleasant: for roughly two days after the bite, the injury is cold and the victim will feel random, cold, shooting pains. Their core body temperature will drop and they will often be sent into random fits of shivering. No medicine seems to help, and no amounts of blankets or hot baths can soothe the chill. You're just going to have to deal with it and hope it gets better… Most experiences with the bunnies are perfectly pleasant, you just have to worry about them burrowing. There are holes peppering Destiny City, and with the fresh fallen snow it can be impossible to tell where they are hiding. The holes range from small holes to several feet deep, so can be a minor inconvenience to a potential hazard. On the bright side, sometimes you wind up covered in bunnies looking for warmth from their sudden guest. On the other hand, there are a rising number of trips to the hospital for twists and sprains. The bunnies always leave with the snow, so best to enjoy them--or avoid them--for as long as you can.
The only downside to Arias’ bakery was that he had to wake up really early, and even though he was quiet and careful to move around, it always woke Caius up. Maybe it was the paranoia of someone sneaking around out of sight, or maybe he’d just gotten used to Arias’ schedule, but Caius dragged himself up.
As expected, there was always breakfast made–French Toast, today, and fresh fruit. As he did most days, he checked the bakery’s social media account while he ate, made a few posts. Went on his personal account and scrolled for more pictures of the bunnies. He hadn’t gotten to see them last night so he was living vicariously through everyone else’s pictures with them.
When he went down to the bakery, he was pleasantly surprised to find that he had a very early morning delivery from the production company he used to print stickers and charms, and it wasn’t supposed to be here until tomorrow.
…But coming in today was a godsend, because they were out of stock of half of their keychains and most of their stickers, and this was everything and more.
He only ever did promotions with Arias’ permission, and because they had all of these things back in stock, he’d asked if they could do something special. Arias was always obliging, and of course trusted him with any social media promotion. So, Caius made an announcement across all of their platforms that for today only, if you took a picture of a snowbunny and tagged them you could get ten percent off your total order by coming in and showing your post.
So, he got to get his fix of snowbunnies and advertise the bakery. He attached a picture of the snowbunny keychains that had just come in, careful to catch the light so anyone could easily see the holographic snowflake film. Oh, he loved it; ust seeing them made him smile in a way that was probably stupidly giddy but he was so excited.
The post was made, so he got to work; he’d volunteered to watch the register until Nick could take over in a little while, but he had some errands to run and Caius was a little protective of his displays so was glad to stay on the register so he could be close to them and get everything refilled.
Ten minutes before they were supposed to open, Arias had already brought out and arranged the display case, and Caius knelt to look at the array of cute little animal desserts based on his designs. He couldn’t help but smile at them, at the keychains, at everything. He had the box of charms and stickers on the counter and was trying to unwrap them quickly, and when he finished the handful he was working on he stood up and began to hang them on the racks.
…And then the hair on the back of his neck prickled and he had the strange sensation that someone was watching him. Slowly, he turned to the look through the wall of glass, outside.
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Posted: Sun Dec 26, 2021 5:55 pm
Lynette had seen the post about the new special at the bakery, and she had hurried down there, face pressed against the glass. It wasn’t open yet, she knew that…but she wanted to make sure she got everything that was offered. She wanted to make sure that she got everything.
When Lynette saw Caius turn to face her, she pressed closer and waved, grinning, her smile looking just a bit sinister as the glare from the sun made her glasses just bright spots of light.
If her friend was there, perhaps she would be able to get in early…and get lots to eat before the big rush came. Plus, she saw that there were new keychains on the counter too…and she wanted them.
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Posted: Sun Dec 26, 2021 6:12 pm
A shiver ran down Caius’ spine as he stared at the girl in the mirror. He recognized her, of course, but she didn’t look so–well, so evil then.
…Maybe she hadn’t had her coffee yet.
“Um.” He looked over his shoulder and called to Arias, “I’m going to unlock the doors, there’s…someone outside…”
He didn’t hear what Arias had said in response, but it sounded like a muffled approval so he was probably busy decorating again. Nervously, he hurried over to the door and smiled through the glass. He hoped she hadn’t been possessed or something. The door clicked when he unlocked it and he pulled it open. “It’s chilly out there, do you want to come in? We’re still getting everything ready so there’s a little bit of a mess but I can get you set up with anything you need.”
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Posted: Sun Dec 26, 2021 6:33 pm
“Hello Caius! I saw that you were going to get new merchandise. And a sale. I came early so that I would be able to get the first choice of everything. You made more keychains too. I want some. Are you ready for my business, or do I have to wait the extra thirteen minutes?”
She smiled brightly and moved to enter the cafe, not wanting to pass up the offer to get warm, even if she was told that she had to wait to begin making a purchase. “I would honestly appreciate being served now though. I’d love something chocolate. I know everything I ate last time was…perfection. Complete and utter perfection. If you have anything new, anything really chocolatey…you know I want it. And some of that hot chocolate I had last time. It was fantastic and perfect.”
Her jacket still had the keychain on the zipper that she had purchased the last time she was there.
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Posted: Sun Dec 26, 2021 6:43 pm
Oh, right to business. Even if he was a little overwhelmed, Caius smiled and hurried to move the boxes out of her way so she could get a clear view of the counter. “No, you don’t have to wait. I’ll get you whatever you want. I’m really glad you came early, we definitely have some chocolate-y things.”
He moved behind the counter and began to get the hot chocolate started, glad that he had the opportunity to buy himself a few seconds while he hid the smile he’d gotten just from seeing her come in with the keychain attached.
“You’re the first person here, so you get the absolute first choice of everything. Do you want me to pick a few different chocolate things for you while you look at the keychains, or do you want me to go over the menu with you? Because I can definitely suggest three right off the bat. Our chocolate muffins are still warm, so the chocolate inside is still going to be good and gooey. Did you bring me a picture of the bunnies? I haven’t gotten to see them in a little while, but I just love them.”
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Posted: Sun Dec 26, 2021 6:52 pm
Lynette had lit up like a christmas tree at the idea of the muffins still being warm…and the fact that the insides would still be gooey. “Pick all of the chocolate for me. I want all of it. Price is no object!”
A picture of the bunnies…oh.
Oh wow she had missed that part of the memo, hadn’t she. Quietly, Lynette shook her head, wincing. “...Money is no object. I believe I skipped that part of the message…I haven’t…seen the rabbits but…” She pulled her phone out, looking for something that was at least a little cute…
“Here’s a picture of a pigeon that I saw in the park. He was dumb looking.” She showed it to Caius and shrugged, giving a hesitant smile. “...I can still buy things…right? Even if I don’t see the rabbit?”
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Posted: Sun Dec 26, 2021 7:01 pm
For a second, Caius stalled. “A-All? Like…one of every…chocolate sweet?”
…Could any one person even eat that much? It was a scary thought, but…
She had looked a little scary this morning. If anyone could do it, it would probably be someone who could easily look so sinister.
He had been putting on his gloves so he could grab her some sweets and smiled quickly when she said she didn’t have any pictures of the rabbits. “You can still buy things! You can get, um. A special first person of the day discount!”
She had pulled out the picture of the pigeon and, even if he wasn’t a rabbit, Caius still found himself snickering. “He’s really silly looking, I think it counts. I think the rabbits mostly come out when it’s dark, they burrow through the snow and pop out. Their little noses wiggle and–ugh. I asked people to post their favorite pictures of them to a post I made on our social media sites, so if you haven’t gotten to see them yet, you should check there later today. They’re so cute. The charm is based on them,” he said, nodding to the ones he’d been hanging up.
There were an array of charms, but he was particularly biased for the bunnies right now, and he figured she’d have time to look through the charms and see if there were more that she liked while he plucked out a few chocolatey goods.
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Posted: Mon Dec 27, 2021 1:39 pm
“Yes! One of every one please! It’ll be all of my meals today, I think. That seems like a good plan. But. At the very least a chocolate muffin to start out with!”
Lynette listened to his talk about the bunnies…and now she wanted to go and see one, even if just to please Caius. He was being rather kind, and she did appreciate it.
The keychains…They were perfect. All of them. Grabbing two of each, including an extra of the one she already had hanging from her zipper, Lynette put them all on the counter and drew out her credit card. “I would also like these two, Caius. I need no discount, but my heart and soul need chocolate and the wonderful keychains that you provide. They are perfect, and I need extras in case something happens to the first set. It’s always good to have extras, you know.”
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Posted: Mon Dec 27, 2021 3:05 pm
Oh, that seemed so dangerous–to eat so much sugar in one day? …But he wasn’t a professional, and he didn’t exactly have the best eating habits either. He wasn’t going to tell her how to live her life, especially when Arias’ baking was so good.
…And then she praised him. He was still packing up the sweets when her words hit him. The effect was visible on his face; his cheeks immediately turned pink and he couldn’t make eye contact. A sheepish smile appeared on his face and it took him a few seconds as he fumbled to tally things up.
“Um, thank you,” he said; he’d taken off his gloves, gave her the price–waited for her to approve it–and then slid her card. When he’d finished with that, he passed it back and bagged up all of the sweets, and then hurriedly got her one more chocolate muffin, on the house. He placed that and her hot chocolate off to the side for easy grabbing.
“I’m pretty sure I can probably stamp off all of the other spots on your card if you want, but um. Thank you. I’m really glad you like them. I’m really excited that I got to make them. If there’s anything you’d like to see, you can send in requests on our website, too. I really like making them, and the owner sort of gives me free reign to do whatever I want. So I get to draw cute things and be around sweet food all day. It’s really great.”
He didn’t talk about his art often, and very rarely told anyone that he’d done the art, but today was a good day and she was so nice. If he could have drawn something she liked, he’d have loved that too.
…He really liked being able to contribute around here, and for as silly as he felt about being proud of everything, he was still beaming.
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Posted: Mon Dec 27, 2021 3:30 pm
Lynette blinked and looked terribly excited. “Wait, you made them? You do things this cute? Do you take commissions? If you do, please put me on your list! I want to get something for my girlfriend! And for me. I love cute things…can you make cute monsters, Caius? Do you have a website?”
She was terribly excited, grabbing the muffin and taking a bite while she waited for him to answer, and she almost melted. “Oh…it really is warm…this is the greatest bakery in the history of the whole world. Please tell the owners I said that. You can use it as a direct quote, if you wish.”
Not that it would hold much weight yet but….
One day. When she found better proof of monsters…that would be the day.
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Posted: Mon Dec 27, 2021 5:26 pm
Caius was flushing again but nodded. “I’ll tell him, he’ll be really happy to hear that. Um–yeah, I do commissions. I like cute anything, I can try to make cute monsters. Um, here,” he grabbed a business card and handed it over, “Just send an email and say we spoke about commissions, you can tell me what you want and I’ll send you my information.”
He’d have given her another bag full of chocolatey goods if he wasn’t sure Arias would be disappointed in him, but Caius was a little starved for praise–Nick and Arias gave him plenty!--but she was a stranger. She had nothing to gain by praising him! Oh, except for all the chocolate he wanted to give her right now.
Most of the time he felt like he had imposter syndrome, like he didn’t belong here.
…But hearing things like this gave him more hope. A little more confidence. Small steps.
“You should come by more often, I like what you have to say,” he said, before he could filter the thought.
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Posted: Mon Dec 27, 2021 6:36 pm
“Oh, I will! This place has the best goodies in the whole city, and the cutest art too. I don’t think I’d ever go anywhere else.” Taking the card, Lynette beamed and placed it into her pocket happily, eagerly beginning to dream up just what she wanted him to draw for her and Mirzam. Cute little creepy things, most likely.
“Thank you for all of this, Caius! You are quite fantastic, and friendly.” She beamed and shoved the rest of the muffin into her mouth, taking a swig of hot chocolate after she had chewed for a moment.
When the muffin was down, she smiled softly. “I’m going to head home, and I'll find rabbits too! I’ll send you pictures in my email, expect it, okay? I hope you have wonderful sales today! You deserve it!”
She hesitated her nose twitching for a second before she grabbed another one of the treats and stuffed it into her mouth too, before picking up the others and walking towards the door, waving behind her as she left.
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